Gacha games are famous for their raunchy character designs and objectification. But can you fight fire with fire? Can you teach gamers to respect women, by wrapping a positive message in lewd imagery?
Goddess of Victory: Nikke is a game that attempts to find out. We'll see just how Nikke teaches gamers to respect women, while also taking a look at the limits of Nikke as a teaching tool,...
It's 2:00 AM, and I'm exhausted.
I'm about 3/4's of the way through a script that reads like a combination of the Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir, and Das Kapital. This was not originally my intention. This was supposed to be the haha funny butt joke video. I wanted this to be a softer, gentler video. I think it still can be, but there is no discussing the gacha game Goddess of Victo...
Hi Patrons!! Sorry about the slow upload again. I'll make it up to you in the future: maybe with a short podcast style audio recording, perhaps!
Here's the ad-free video for all of you though! The description follows, below:
---
Nintendo has a famously itchy trigger finger when it comes to firing off Cease & Desists. In the past few years, we've seen all kinds of Nintendo fan ...
Hello, dear Patrons! I shared this post on YouTube Community, but going forward, I'd like to make this kind of content a Patreon exclusive for you, wherein we talk thumbnails, and showcase both the art and thought process behind some of these thumbnails.
I used to make all of the thumbnails myself, but have found that commissioning art is both a lot less work, and a lot more fun. I love ...
Good evening, dear Patrons. It's been a little while since my last check-in: I'm afraid I've been terribly busy lately, and am only now finding a bit of time to say hello.
The next video is coming together nicely, but the script is a bit longer than anticipated. The video is on Pokemon Showdown, and it'll be a fun video, though I fear it may also be a bit dense at times.
I'm ...
2024-07-14 23:35:54 +0000 UTC View Post
A friend of mine shared this picture taken from twitter with me today out of the blue, along with the subtle hint that there might be a video therein.
The potential topic we could discuss associated with this memetic bumper-sticker is: Is Rogue the Bat Latina?
Now I, at first, scoffed at this potential topic: it is deeply and remarkably stupid. BUT... you know, I kind of like stup...
Hello, dear patrons! This year's pride month video is finally ready for you, as is tradition, on the last day of pride month. I think this video came out pretty well, despite how short the run time is!
Please enjoy, and let me know what you think! This video's thumbnail was worked on by a few artist -- if you have any thoughts on it, I'd love to see them, as well!
You are all, of ...
With the anime video now released, I've found that I have a bit more free time than usual, and as tends to be the case when I have free time, I've fallen into the habit of overthinking.
First and foremost, greetings to all the new Patrons! I'm so grateful for your support, and for the support of everyone here. It's not an exaggeration to say that your patronage is what allows me to real...
In modern international politics, it is just as important to win hearts and minds, in one's own country and abroad, as it is to have power by force of arms. We call this power over hearts and minds: the power to sway people by persuasion rather than by force, soft power.
And no country on Earth has mastered the art of soft power through cultural media quite like Japan has. In this video...
And, it's done! The final thumbnail! I might have our artist @LouritaShine add an emote for YouTube members to use (and for all of you to download, if you like), as well!
The title of the video is -- Kawaii: Anime, and Soft Power Politics
But, I'm a bit afraid that the title lacks punchiness. It seems the thumbnail will be doing the heavy lifting here!
The video should be r...
Still hard at work on the video, but here's a sneak peek for the thumbnail: an early sketch done by artist and personal friend of mine, @LouritaShine.
Let me know what you think, and if this one resonates with you! I personally love it!
I have a special surprise for the Patreon: a preview of the upcoming video on anime and soft power! The title is a work in progress -- I'm afraid that I've always been terrible at coming up with video titles, so if you can think of a better one, I'd be happy to hear your suggestions.
The full video will be about two and a half hours in length, and this first twenty six minutes or so serv...
With the release of the Thousand Year Door remaster just around the corner, I thought I'd do some investigating to see just how the character of Vivian was handled in the remake.
For fans of last year's Pride Month video, you may recall that Vivian's status as a transwoman has long been a matter of controversy, being hinted at only in certain localizations, and outright confirmed in only...
I was walking along, minding my business, when out of an orange colored sky… Flash, Bam, Alakazam! The Fallout TV show came by!
And it got me thinking, well, just how realistic is Fallout anyway? Humans don’t turn into ghouls when exposed to too much radiation and nuclear bombs tend to be a bit more destructive than portrayed… sure. But what about the geopolitics and history of th...
Hello, dear Patrons! I've been hard at work on the next video, concerning Anime, Video Games, and Soft Power. The script is one of the best I've worked on so far, and the video is going to be a long, winding, historical one, starting as early as interactions between the Han Dynasty and Rome, moving our way through historical orientalism, the opening of Japan, Japonisme, early Japanophilia, the ...
2024-04-18 15:25:04 +0000 UTC View Post
I thought I'd uploaded the video: sorry about that!
Here's the video, presented ad-free. I'll get these to you early instead of late one of these days, I promise!
---
The Great Emu-War continues. Yuzu, once the leading Nintendo Switch emulator, has been sued out of existence by Nintendo of America. In so doing, Nintendo has revealed its complete hand, and we have, arguably for the...
The next video is almost ready for you: I've been grinding through jetlag and office catch-up to get it to you before the end of March. I do hope that this isn't arriving too late to the discussion!
I'll be making those cultural posts I promised too, in due time. I lost the draft of the two page long Okinawa post I put together, due to a quirk of mobile Patreon, and so I may need just a...
I was going to do a long history post concerning Okinawa, with some interesting photos, but I thought I'd bring up a few curiosities I'd encountered for your amusement.
First, while I was in Taiwan, I actually encountered an American Twitch Streamer of some sort. I took a photo -- he was being followed by a gaggle of other Americans and generally being very loud in Ximending. I'm glad to ...
2024-03-19 08:17:03 +0000 UTC View Post
I've been abroad for almost a month now, handling some responsibilities while ignoring a great deal many more back home. It's been good to take a break, and to reflect, though it will also soon be time to return to the grind.
I have a number of interesting stories for you, both cultural and personal, each accompanied by photos I've taken. I've selected these three photos to start. I...
2024-03-18 06:36:11 +0000 UTC View PostHello, my dear patrons. I apologize for the silence on Patreon, and the lack of video releases as of late.
I had a death in the family, and I've been out of the United States for the past week. I will not be back until likely the end of March, and thus the next video also isn't likely to be ready until then.
Your patronage means the world to me, and I hate to disappoint. I hope thou...
2024-02-28 11:40:52 +0000 UTC View Post
South Korea is in the midst of a brutal civil war, but it might not be the one you're thinking of.
In Part 1, we discussed how Neo-Confucianism and foreign oppression shaped Korea into the deeply hierarchical society that it is today. Now that we've seen the historical roots, it's time to examine the trees so that we can finally observe the entire forest for what it is. &nbs...
I'm sorry for the relative quietness of late! I've been grinding non-stop to finish the Korean gacha game video, including resolving some troublesome fair-use issues on the footage used.
I'm aiming to have the video ready by this Saturday, but it may take until as late as Tuesday for the sponsor to approve it.
This is the longest video I've produced for Moon Channel, and yet, I'd...
I apologize for the relative silence, everyone. And please forgive me for not getting to all the private messages: I'm afraid I've been really lost in my work lately, and haven't had time to get to those.
Pt. 2 of the gacha drama video is slowly being edited together: it's the longest video I've ever made, with a run-time of nearly two full hours. About half an hour has been edited so fa...
It's been a chaotic week, but I'm back at the video grind! Part 2 of the gacha drama video is going to be very, very long: long to the point where I have to either do another round of material cuts, or make a Pt. 3. At present, I'm about halfway done recording Pt. 2, and just that alone is already weighing in at 50 minutes runtime.
That said, I think it's some of my best work yet! I sin...
Presented accidentally late to Patreon (again), but ad-free!
Please enjoy, and let me know if you have any questions! This is the first video in a two part series.
---
South Korea is in the midst of a brutal civil war, but it might not be the one you're thinking of. The South Korean gender war is like nothing else in the world, with so-called "male chauvinists" and "radical femini...
I was reviewing some of the messages I'd received lately on Patreon, when I came across a recent comment on the JRPG video by a new Nightingale patron, Brett Turner, concerning Sailor Moon.
Here's his comment, below:
"Hi, so, first, this is my favorite video, because you actually take a moral stance with some message of hope at the end, which isn't so common to hear anywhere. &nb...
It's finally 2024, and I'd like to kick off the year with a new Moon Channel tradition. The link I've attached contains the 2024 State of the Moonion Address: an annual report of sorts, for all of you Patrons.
In it, you'll learn about Moon Channel's beginnings, and get a more in depth look at the ideas, thought processes, and finances of the channel. You'll also get a very intimate look ...
2024-01-05 05:13:18 +0000 UTC View PostSo, the new video was released on YouTube, concerning The Completionist and Karl Jobst. I, being rather unexperienced with the whole YouTube thing, very seriously underestimated how upset people would be about any negative treatment of Jobst and Mutahar.
Now, as a lawyer (I hate saying that), being on the receiving end of a little yelling and screaming is no big deal: doubly so if it's i...
The "Short" law review episode is finally here! Just in time for New Year's Eve.
Please enjoy this last Moon Channel episode of the year, actually released early this time, unlike usual, for Patrons.
I'll be hosting a premier of this episode later, well, today, I suppose, given the time. I cordially invite all of you to join in and ask questions as we watch the episode together!
I apologize for the radio silence lately! I've been very hard at work, both at the office, but also on two videos: the Korean Gacha video, which is looking like it'll be feature length, and the Completionist Law Review episode, which has ballooned out of control, and will be about an hour long itself. I might release it as a premier so that I can answer questions in real time: we'll see how tha...
2023-12-29 05:49:25 +0000 UTC View Post